Saipan — Chief Justice Alexandro C. Castro has filed a letter of intent to seek retention as Chief Justice of the Commonwealth Supreme Court in the 2026 general election.
Castro has served on the Commonwealth Supreme Court since 2012. He wrote that leading the third branch of government has been one of the greatest privileges of his professional life.
In the letter, Castro pointed to the recovery of the Guma’ Hustisia after Super Typhoon Yutu in 2018, when the collapse of the courthouse’s aging HVAC system caused extensive mold contamination and forced a temporary closure. He wrote that funding was secured for remediation and rehabilitation and that court operations continued from the Marianas Business Plaza, the Multipurpose Center and the JCT Building until the courthouse reopened.
He also cited the judiciary’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic through expanded remote technology and modified court operations, and its continued operation through economic hardship and austerity with reduced staffing.
Castro listed the eCourt filing and case management system, electronic supervision tools for drug court participants, and electronic recording systems for land documents among the judiciary’s modernization efforts. He wrote that the judiciary established the Mental Health Court Docket, a specialty treatment court, and implemented Family Court night sessions for people whose work or family obligations make daytime hearings difficult.
He wrote that the judiciary promulgated or amended more than 20 rules, including updates to the Rules of Civil Procedure and the In Forma Pauperis procedures, the Rules of Attorney Discipline and Procedure, and the Rules of Judicial Disciplinary Procedure.
Castro wrote that he helped bring about a bar reciprocity agreement between the Commonwealth Supreme Court and the Guam Supreme Court in June 2026, which he described as the product of years of discussion between the two jurisdictions. He has also served as a pro tem justice for the Supreme Court of Guam and the Supreme Court of Palau.
He credited Associate Justice John A. Manglona for safeguarding the judiciary’s financial integrity and stewardship of its budget.
The letter was copied to the Commonwealth Supreme Court justices, the Superior Court judges and the Northern Marianas Bar president.
